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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. I'd like to play a game of ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. vault — a safe
  2. kid — child
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. bat — the animal
  5. rash — a series
  6. last — to go on
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. vault — an arched ceiling
  10. last — finally
  11. rash — hasty
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bear — the animal
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. squash — to crush
  18. kid — to tease
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. vault — in gymnastics
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. squash — the vegetable
  23. last — final
  24. squash — the sport

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com